The Product

After World War II amidst the rubble and destruction a way was discovered to take the huge volumes of wood waste, grind it into chips, mineralize the chips to neutralize the natural sugars that cause rot, and bond them to cement to form a building block. This is the genesis of the Faswall™ ICF Wall Form.

Since then, tens of thousands of homes and commercial buildings have been built in Europe and Asia and North America with this remarkable material. This remains one of the preferred methods of building in Europe. It has been available in North America for close to 30 years. In 1987 Hans and Leni Walter of K-X Faswall International Corp. advanced the state of the art with a patented mineralization process that allows virtually any wood or cellulose fiber to be bonded to cement.

The wall form blocks are manufactured in 24" long modular units to aid the designer. They are designed to be under 30 lbs to aid the installer. Simply stack the wall forms on top of one another without mortar. The interlocking end design keeps the wall forms in place. Rebar is set both horizontally and vertically within the stacked forms prior to filling the cores with concrete. This creates a "post and beam" grid effect which makes the wall exceptionally strong. Essentially, Faswall™ is a efficient method of building a reinforced concrete wall with built-in thermal, acoustical and fire protection. Our wall-forms can be used above-grade, below-grade, for commercial or residential applications.

The System

ShelterWorks offers the Faswall product in Kit form. Each kit is comprised of the 4 wall form designs the builder needs to complete corners, openings, and lintels. This virtually eliminates waste on the job site as all wall forms are dimensionally interchangeable. No more searching for pallets of corner blocks or ½ blocks as all the tools needed are included in kit form on each delivered pallet. Wall Forms are 24"x12" wide x 8" high. ½ sized wall forms are 12"x12"x8" high.

Each Kit includes these "Tools":

1/2 wall form female-part 1212F	1/2 wall form male-part 1212M	Corner,all purpose wall form-part 1224AP	Standard wall form-part 1224

Features & Benefits to You & to a Sustainable Future

• What’s it made of?— 85% mineralized wood chips from recycled wood and 15% Portland cement and fly ash; that’s all.
  
  
• Durable. Faswall™ buildings can have useful lives measured in centuries, not decades.
  
  
• Utilizes a renewable, sustainable resource with one of the lowest embodied energies in a building material-wood. Unique and patented mineralization process allows use of many wood species.
  
  
• 4 hour fire rating. No flame spread, no smoke development (ASTM C-119-88, E-84-89a)
  
  
• Freeze and Thaw. Passed 300 cycle test (ASTM C-666)
  
  
• Termite and Pest resistant. Unlike foam, termites do not tunnel through Faswall™. Test by Univ. of Georgia Dept. of Entomology.
  
  
• Suitable for all seismic zones.
  
  
• Sound Proof (ASTM E 90-90). STC rating of 55: Creates exceptionally quiet indoor space.
  
  
• Cuts with carpenter’s tools. Takes screws and nails on all surfaces. No installation or searching for furring strips.
  
  
• Meets or exceeds building codes and energy codes in all states.
  
  
• Breathable. Wall slowly exchanges air between outside and inside without compromising insulation value, eliminating any moisture buildup in the wall.
  
  
• Minimal bracing as compared to foam ICFs and concrete cures faster and more evenly as the hydration moisture can be released through the wall form.
  
  
• ½ the concrete infill compared to foam ICFs for similar wall thickness.
  
  
• Insulation inserts insulate the thermal mass into the living space gaining the full benefit of a thermal fly wheel effect whereas foam ICFs isolate the mass from the living space.
  
  
• No fume out-gassing, no VOC’s, no formaldehyde...period.
  
  
• For those interested in Bau Biologie, Faswall™ has an ion ratio of 60% negative:40% positive--approximates the outdoors
  
  
• Comparable installed cost to foam ICFs, SIPS, and advanced framing..
  
  
• Supervised unskilled labor can be used for installation. Ideal for owner built homes.
  
  
• Excellent substrate for plasters and stuccos; keys-in on the porous surfaces.
  
  
• Wall is highly alkaline and breathable. These two factors combine to be inhospitable to mold growth.. period.
  
  
• Faswall™ is hydroscopic; it absorbs and releases water vapor in a “sink effect’ — evens out indoor humidity.
  
  
• Insulated thermal mass into the living space contributes to lower temperature swings and significantly reduced heating and cooling costs.
  
  
• Non thermal mass enhanced R values of 18-23. Performance R values significantly higher depending on glazing quality, southern exposure and climate.
  
  
• Very low life -cycle energy cost.